Story # 1

I needed some work done on my car - front brake pads, rear struts, few other things

A few shops quoted me at over $1,000 total for the job (parts, and labor)

A cleaning lady, who works at the AirBnB where I’m currently staying, needed a ride home, so she could pick up her 5 year-old daughter from school

It was thrown on me at the last minute

I didn’t have to do it, but this woman would have been stranded, along with her daughter

I drove her to her daughter’s school, where we waited for her 5 year-old, and then I drove them both home

I didn’t ask for anything, and never planned to

She was so thankful

A few days later, we were chatting about the car repair job I was shopping around for - she said she knew someone, and did a bit of networking

Final price?

$600, parts, everything included

That’s $400 saved, jump-started by a simple act of kindness, aka “paying it forward”

Story # 2

Almost 9 years ago, I was looking for a job in a certain field - I sent my virtual resume through Indeed, Monster, etc to over 100 different companies - nothing (just lots of clicking)

My brother made one phone call - done

Story # 3

Yesterday, I reached out to someone on this email list - someone I’ve known for over 4 years - an amazing human being

She basically gave me a free health and wellness consultation - we talked about supplements, etc

It was one of the best health consults I’ve ever had - better than any doctor could give for any amount of money

I could have paid hundreds for a consult like this - she spent almost 3 hours on the phone with me

She was so generous with her time

Her 10 year-old son is interested in learning music production software, which is what I’ve been learning over the past few months - I’m considering doing some tutorials via Zoom with him for an hour or two - to “pay it forward”

Story # 4

I began learning how to make sourdough bread from scratch in late 2020

Scripture talks a lot about bread, “breaking bread”, etc

Once the bread loaves started coming out decent, I thought: “maybe I could give some of this bread away to the homeless”

This was the first time I really experienced God

Some people had one leg, standing on street corners, crippled for life, no money for food

I would ask: “you want some home-baked bread I made?”

“Yes”

Fresh baked sourdough bread, straight from the kitchen, delivered to these people, on the street corner

Matthew 24:12

“And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold”

My Proposition

What would make someone the happiest camper in the world for one moment?

You may gain nothing from it - but God listens

Giving is probably one of the closest things to God humans can experience

Consider “paying it forward”

The universe changes, in the most unexpected way you could possibly imagine

Think about the people you see, the people around you
1. Do they have children?
2. Are there elderly?
3. What is everyone doing?

James 2:24

“By works a man is justified, and not by faith only”

Matthew 22:21

“Render therefore unto Caesar the things which are Caesar's; and unto God the things that are God's”

You can still work, do your day to day, but don’t forget about the people with one leg on street corners

You never know when “paying it forward” will come back to you, when in need

“Pay It Forward” was a good film, if you have time to watch

Rule # 1: Have to be a good listener

Rule # 2: If you’ve received a “pay it forward act”, you must pay it forward either back, or to someone else

Sincerely,

Mike

Mike's Network

Pay It Forward